VOLUME XX NUMBER 15
"The Eyes and Ears of the Community"
AFRICANS SET THE WORLD’S STANDARD FOR STYLE,
FASHION AND BEAUTY
African peoples practically began
their existence as the w orld’s leaders in
style and fashion-from hairstyle to dress,
to jew elry. N oto n ly did ancient Africa
give the w orld mathem atics, astron
omy and letters, but pioneered in the
c u ltu ra l
id io m
of
“ lo o k in g
good” ...” stylin” ’. As well-documented
here, we have had no peers before or
since.
Considering that African Americans
belong to a race that has alw ays been
" o n e step ah ead ” in class and sophisti
cation, they m ight well ask, “ W here
and when did it all begin?” W hy were
others still wearing anim al skins and
piercing their tightly balled hair with
the bones o f predators, w hile Africans
had already pioneered an advanced
culture that the world has alw ays de-
n ie d -b u t has tried to copy ever since?
W .E.B. D ubois, the noted Black his
torian, tells us, “ In Greek narratives,
Ethiopia, 'la n d o f the burnt faces’, lay
either side o f the Red Sea in A frica and
Asia, and was inhabited by Black folks.”
As described in Sm ith’s “ A D ic
tionary o f the Bible” , it is “ the country
in which the G reeks and the Romans
described as A ethiopia and the He
brews as 'C o s h ’, lying to the south of
Egypt and em braced in its m ost ex
tended sense, the m odem N ubia (now
the Sudan).’ ’ This civilization founded
by peoples whom the patriarchs de
scribed as the “ Sons of Ham ’ ’ flowered
9000 years ago (long before E gypt’s
dyn asties)-an d it is the transm ittal of
E thiopia’s culture and tradition to the
North which is responsible for E gypt’s
glory. First to Egypt, then to Greece,
then to Rom e, and eventually the world.
For now, let us see what w ent on in the
fashionable daily life o f our ancestors.
It is only to be expected that in the
course of three thousand years, fash
ions in dress and hair styles should vary
and show a tendency to becom e more
elaborate as tim e went on and as dis
tinctions betw een people and their per
sonal taste becam e more varied and so
phisticated; yet, generally speaking,
the unvarying clim ated tended to keep
dress simple and light, and basically it
rem ained fairly constant. The simple
styles o f the O ld Kingdom , a linen loin
cloth o f short apron or skirt for men
knotted at the w aist, with som etim es a
sleeveless tunic, and a straight linen
tunic for women supported by crossed
straps under the breasts, was univer
sally worn by kings and queens and
com m oners alike. In the New King
dom the upper classes o f both sexes
wore more flowing garments with sleeved
tunics and cloaks, often finely pleated,
still o f very fine white linen, colour
being provided by elaborate jew elled
collars, necklaces, bracelets, pectorals
and ear-rings.
Men in the O ld Kingdom wore their
hair short, and women som etim es fol
lowed the same style with shoulder-
length hair, but more often they wore it
long. These styles were replaced in
later periods by intricately curled and
plaited coiffures; the upper classes
wore wigs made of human hair and
vegetable fibres, and those worn on
cerem onial occasions were dressed in a
variety o f elaborate ways and further
ornam ented with diadems, coronets,
flowers and jew els. G reat trouble was
taken over hairdressing by men and
women alike, and an array o f perfum ed
ointments, dressing and fixatives were
used, and there are many recipes for
combating grey hair and baldness. Wigs
and wig boxes were buried in the tombs
together with other personal posses
sions deem ed essential for eternity.
Open sandals were made o f plaited
papyrus or reed and prettily ornamented;
some were o f gold, and may have been
worn only on ceremonial occasions,
carried by sandal-bearers, to be put on
at the appropriate moment. Egyptians
seemed ju st as happy walking about
b arefo o t
Children presented no great prob
lem where dress was concerned: they
went about naked for the first few years,
after which the boys were given a loin
cloth and girls a belt or a simple tunic.
They wore their hair short except for
one curled sidelock hanging over one
car.
Men and women spent a lot o f time
over their toilet and were attended each
morning by their barbers, manicurists,
pedicurists, masseurs and hairdressers,
equipped with hooked razors with curved
bronze blades, and sets of kni ves, scrap
ers, files and tweezers o f copper and
bronze, and other small implements
kept in fitted boxes or leather cases.
The poorer sections of the population
queued for the attention o f the barber in
the open, under the trees.
A wide range of cosmetics and beauty
preparations was used by both sexes:
scented oils and fats for massaging the
body in hot weather; cleansing creams
consisting o f animal or vegetable oils
and lime, and perhaps chalk, for restor
ing youth, and eradicating wrinkles and
blemishes. W omen painted their cheeks
with rouge, and the red pigm ent found
in cosm etic jars is a red ochre which
was probably used with a base o f vege
table or tallow grease, whith perhaps a
little gun-resin, and this may be the
cosm etic that was also used as lip rouge.
Eye m ake-up was used from the
very earliest period, for which a prepa
ration o f green malachite (a green ore
of copper) was the earliest and remained
the chief one used; the other, which
cam e into use much later and survived
into the Coptic period, was of galena (a
dark grey ore o f lead). The finely
ground material was made into a paste
or powder, and has been found in the
tombs among personal belongings
contained in segments of hollow reeds
or in small vases, them selves som e
times reed-shaped. The present-day
Egyptian kohl, which is still exten
sively used as an eye cosm etic, consists
of soot or a mixture of galena and lamp
black, and is applied with a small rod
made o f wood, bone, ivory or metal,
which is moistened with water and dipped
into the pow dered preparation. The
ancient Egyptians applied their mal
achite and galena eye-paint with simi
lar sticks, or with the finger, to add
lustre to their naturally almond-shaped
eyes, and as a protection against the
dust and the glare o f the sun, or to ward
off flies and other insects.
Too tough! No wonder it was too
hard for any other culture of those an
cient times to follow that a c t-to o diffi
cult for a lot today; class is bom , not
made. For instance, note the illustra
tion o f the African ladies at an ancient
feast. The literature describes their
“ elegant coiffures” , surmounted by
cones o f perfum ed pomades designed
to slowly trickle down to bathe the head
and shoulders. Men were seated on the
opposite side o f the room as they were
“ inclined to reel about and roll on the
floor.” This tradition, like many others
learned in Egypt, was tranmitted to Is
rael by the Jew s o f the Exodus (“ The
Hebrews annointed the hair profusely
with ointments, which were generally
com poinded o f various aromatic ingre
dients” : Ruthiii.3; 2Samxiv.2; PSxiv2;
Eccl.ix.8; see Smith, Dictionary of the
Bible).
So it was that the Africans on both
sides o f the Red Sea- in Ethiopia and
Somali, in the Yemens and across the
G ulf o f Eden in Arabian Africa (the
ancient biblical land o f P u n t)-early on
began the fabulous trades in frankin
cense, myrrh and spices, and developed
the manufacture o f perfum es, unguents
and pomades. W hen the famed African
“ Queen o f Sheba” visited King Solo
mon, she cam e with “ cam els that bare
spices.” Frankincense produced a spe
cial fragrance that for thousands of years
has been a significant elem ent in reli
gious ritu a l-in the Book o f Exodus,
Aaron was instructed in its use (Smith
sonian M agazine, 12/’86, page 148).
Indeed, it is well-docum ented that
Africans set the w orld’s standard for
style, fashion and beauty. And see the
illustrations in both sections o f this spe
cial edition.
ITS HERE!!!
THIS issue of the Portland Observer contains a Special
pull-out section featuring hair care products and
hairstyles. Don’t forget to look for this handy guide.
April 11,1990
Adair Appointed Congratulations..
T o T in ish a W illiam s, ll.w h o w a s
Assistant Director selected
to represent Beach School as
"Miss Cinderella", 1990. the upcom
ing pageantry will be held in W ilson
ville on June 27, with the winner
competing in Miami, Florida in AugsuL
The fifth grader aspires to become
a model and veterinarian.
Donny R. Adair
Oregon D epartment o f Human
Resources Director Kevin W. Concan-
non has named Donny R. Adair A ssis
tant Director with responsibilites for
Human Resource M anagement. "With
12,000 employees in the Department,"
said Concannonn, "the human resource
function is one o f the m ost significant."
Adair will assume his new job on May 1,
1990. He currently seves as Human
Resource M anager o f the Departm ent of
Environmental Quality.
The 39-year old native of Port
land was employed in the Human Re
source Division o f Emanuel Hospital
and Health Center for nine years and
held the position o f Employee Relations
Manger prior to joining DEQ in January
o f 1988. He also served as an investiga
tor and technical assistance coordinator
for the Bureau o f Labor and Industries.
A dair has been active in com
munity affairs in the Portland area. He
has chaired the Boards o f the Urban
League o f Portland and the Tri-County
Affirmative Action Association. He has
also served on the Metropolitan Human
Relations Commission, and the boards
o f Red Cross and United Way.
Adair will be responsible for a
new thrust in organizational develop
ment, personnel policy development,
affirm ative action, and equal access is
sues. Adair will chair the council of
personnel m anagers of the seven DHR
divisions.
A ndto A da Reed, recentrecipient
of the Portland Public Schools E m
ployees award, presented by the M a
sonic Officers Association o f Port
land and Vicinity. Ada represented
1 % of the minority population receiv
ing an Outstanding Service Award,
granted for exceptional or exemplary
service in conduct o f or im prove
ment in the Public School system, as
Woodlawn School Community Agent
and developer of the Woodlawn School
Community and family Outreach Pro
gram.
Meritorious Service Awards were
presented to Edna Mae Pittman, sup
port staff at W hittier M iddle School
and Lurleen Shamsud-Din, Mentor
C oordinator, Sabin E lem entary
School.
Ada Reed
Black United Front Marches
Hundreds of marchers take to the street in support of the
Black United Front's annual march.
Gang violence, Juvenile
Crime, Fighting...
The suspension rate in Portland
Public Schools has increased. Middle
schools have experienced the highest
percentage of stuents suspended between
1988 and 1989.
Suspension has risen for three
minority groups, Native Americans,
African Americans and Hispanic A m eri
cans. The rate for African American
students is about three times higher than
for European American students disrict-
wide.
Cityscope will explore this issue
on Saturday, April 14, along with Cath-
eryn Schar, Portland Public Schools' super
visor o f student discipline programs and
Junious W illiams, consultant to the dis
trict.
The March continued up Martin Luther King
Boulevard Jr. north, and east on Killingsworth.
CREED OF THE BLACK PRESS
The Black Press believes that Am erica can best lead the world away from social and
national antagonisms when It accords to every person, regardless of race, color, or
creed, full human and legal rights. Hating no person, fearing no person, the Black
Press strives to help every person in the firm belief that all are h u rt as long as anyone
Is held back.
The staff and management
of the Portland Observer would
like to wish you and those close
to you a happy Easter Sunday.